Family Issues
by sototallyrandom
Summary: Aria's world is crashing down on her and no one even knows. Her brother moved out, and her dad is hurting her. Will she tell anyone?
1. Chapter 1

**Ok, I'm writing this chapter like a test run. If I get some reviews telling me to continue it I will. If I don't, I won't, so if you want me to continue make sure to tell me. **

Aria's POV

I pound on the door to Ezra's apartment, tears running down my face. The door opens.

"Aria! What's wrong?" Ezra asks, concerned, while bringing me inside.

"Nothing." I sniffle. I honestly don't know why I came here, I can't tell anyone why I'm so upset, not even the girls.

"Come on, Aria. You wouldn't show up on my doorstep in the middle of the night crying if nothing was wrong." Ezra says. We both sit down on his couch, and I stare at my hands, playing with the ends of my long sleeves with my fingers. He puts his arm around me, and his hand holds my left upper arm. I flinch and shy away.

"What's wrong with your arm?" He asks, worried. "Did A hurt you?"

"No. Nothing's wrong." I lie.

"Let me see.." He says. He holds my left hand and starts to slide up my sleeve. I jerk my hand away and shout

"I told you nothing is wrong!" I wrap my arms around myself, because his heater isn't working very well.

"Aria…" He starts.

"I shouldn't have come." I muttered. "I have to go." I say as I stand up and hurry out of his apartment.

"Aria!" I hear him call, but I keep walking to the parking lot and get into my car. My dad's going to be pissed. I drive home on the dark road. All of a sudden my headlights go out.

"Shit!" I yell in frustration. Luckily I was right near my house, and I used the light from the streetlamps to park. I walked the rest of the way up the street back to my house, even though it was the last place I wanted to be. Mom moved out, and then Mike moved out. It's just me and my dad, who has been getting drunk and violent more and more since Mom left. That's why Mike left. He offered to take me with him, but I want to try and help fix Dad. I walk in the front door and lock it behind me.

"Aria?" My dad calls out.

"Yeah, it's just me."

"I was worried." He mutters as he walks into the kitchen where I am holding a glass of vodka.

"Dad, maybe you should just have some water…?" I suggest, and try to take the glass from his hand. He backhands me in the face.

"Don't tell me what to do." He bellows as my eyes well up with tears. I should have learned by now never the try and stop him from drinking when he was already drunk. I just nod and hurry up to my room. I'm lying on my bed when my phone buzzes. I check it, and it's an A text.

_Looks like you won't be getting any daddy-daughter time -A_

I burst into tears and shove my face into my pillow. My phone rings again, and I almost scream and throw it at the wall until I see that it's Spencer. I pick it up.

"He… Hello?" I stutter into the phone.

"Are you crying? Aria what's wrong?" Spencer asks.

"N.. no, I'm… I'm not crying. I.. I'm fine." I cry.

"Aria what is it?" She insists.

"Nothing Spence, I promise." I say, finally in control of my tears.

"Aria…" She says.

"Why did you call?" I ask.

"I wanted to know if you wanted to sleep over at my house Saturday. Emily and Hanna are coming too."

"Yeah, sure. Sounds fun." I say.

"Great. See you at school tomorrow." She says.

"Yeah. See ya." I say, and she hangs up. I almost wish someone knew so I could have someone to understand. I'm thinking maybe I should tell Spencer.

* * *

Spencer's POV

I'm closing my locker after getting my books, and she's suddenly right there.

"Hi Aria." I say cheerfully.

"Hi." She mumbles. Something is definitely going on.

"I knew something was wrong. What is it?" I ask.

"Um, well.." She starts. "Mike moved out." She says looking at the ground.

"Oh my gosh I'm so sorry!" Poor Aria. She loves Mike so much.

"because, um, my dad…" She stares at her shoes. It's right then that I realize how sad she looks. She's just wearing sneakers, jeans, and a sweater. That's so unlike her. She didn't even put on much makeup.

"Your dad what?" I ask.

"He…." Just then the bell rings and everyone starts rushing to class. Someone bumps into her left arm and she cries out in pain.

"Aria what's wrong with your arm?!" I question her. She just shakes her head and walks away crying.

"Aria!" I call after her. I run up behind her and grab her left arm without realizing and she yelps in pain.

"I'm so sorry!" I apologize.

"It's nothing." She says. I pick up the same hint at a lie in her voice that I heard last night on the phone.

"Aria…" Aria just walks away, and this time I don't follow her. There is something seriously wrong. She is usually so strong, so independent. But today it seems like she really needs help. She looks worn out, like she's been putting up a face for a while but can't do it anymore. I need to talk to her.

**I know it's a short chapter, but I just need to see if any of you are interested before I continue to write the whole thing, so if you want me to continue, review and tell me.**


	2. Chapter 2

**I got some reviews asking me to continue, so I'm going to. Sorry for taking longer than usual to update, I'm having a bit of a writer's block. Oh and I looked back and found a bunch of typos in my last chapter (Sorry!) so I'm working on that, because I know it's harder to read with typos. Anyways, enjoy! Happy reading! -sototallyrandom**

Aria's POV

It's Saturday. Finally. I can just relax with my friends and not worry about my dad. I'm packing some things into my bag and getting ready to go. I check off everything in my head as I put it in my bag. I zip it up and throw it over my shoulder. I quietly walk down the steps and see my dad passed out on the couch. I carefully open and close the front door as I leave the house. I get into my car and start driving. When I get to Spencer's house, I walk up to the front door and she opens it before I knock.

"Hey Aria!" Spencer, Hanna, and Emily greet me with hugs. Spencer sees me wince, and gives me a questioning look. I come inside, and we lay out sleeping bags on the floor of Spencer's living room. After a few hours, we are all completely relaxed and having a great time. Even me. My back is so sore though, I checked the mirror, and I have another bruise between my shoulder blades from a few days ago.

"How long are you going to keep wearing long sleeves, Aria? Winter is almost over, and it's not that cold anymore." Hanna says. I shrug.

"I don't know." I answer. I look at Spencer and I can tell that she wants to ask me about what I said the other day at school.

"She can wear it as long as she wants, Han." Emily defends me, even though she doesn't know why I'm wearing them. I love Em's casualness so much.

"Or until she's healed." Spencer mutters under her breath. _Traitor!_

"What?" Emily asks. I nervously put my hand behind my neck.

"N.. nothing…" I stutter.

"Aria, tell me what's going on. Right _now_." Spencer commands.

"I.. I.. I can't." I stutter again. Hanna and Emily look very concerned and confused, but Spencer just looks angry at me for some unknown reason.

"Fine." She says. She moves over to me quickly and pulls up my sleeve before I realize what she is doing.

"Hey!" I shout. Emily and Hanna gasp, and even Spencer looks a little horrified. She slides my sleeve up the rest of my arm and looks at the massive bruise.

"It's even worse that I thought." Spencer mutters.

"Did A do this to you?" Emily asks. I shake my head.

"Fitz?" Hanna asks.

"NO!" I shout, and they jump. I look down at my lap then up at Spencer. I think she figured it out, because she looks extremely sorry.

"I have to go." I say. I stand up, grab only my jacket and car keys, and make a run for it.

"Aria!" Emily calls. I slam my car door and drive away when they get outside.

Spencer's POV

That's why Aria is so upset. It's her _dad._

"I think we should find her." Emily says. Hanna agrees and calls her.

I don't think Aria wants them to know. I can see that this is really hard for her, but I can't NOT tell them. They need to know so we can all comfort her.

Aria's POV

I drive to Ezra's and the only noises I make are sobs. I can't keep anything from anyone, and I need to tell him. Spencer has probably already told Emily and Hanna. Little Traitor. I pull into the parking lot, and step out of the car. It still gets pretty cold at night. I pull my jacket tighter against me and walk into the building. I walk up all the steps and get to apartment 3B. I hold my hand up against the door to knock, but chicken out at the last second. I turn around and walk back down the hall. I hear the door open behind me.

"Aria? Is that you?" He asks. I turn, and he looks so concerned it breaks my heart.

"Yeah it's me. I need to talk to you." I say, before I can talk myself out of it.

"Of course." He says, and motions for me to come into his apartment.

"Are you ready to let me see your arm?" He asks as we sit on the couch. I stare at my hands for a moment, and finally pull my left sleeve up. His eyes widen.

"Did A do this?" He asks me in furry.

"No." I whisper.

"What happened?" he asks.

"Um, my dad." I say to quickly for him to understand.

"What?"

"My dad." I say slower.

"Your… Your dad did this to you?!" I can hear the anger boiling up inside him.

"And this." I say, pulling up the leg of my jeans to reveal yet another massive bruise. I can practically see the steam billowing out of his ears.

"Ezra, promise me you won't do anything stupid." I order. He looks right into my eyes, and his are burning with intensity.

"But he.."

"Promise me."

"Fine." He says. He leans into the couch and he puts his hand on my back. I flinch.

"There too?!" He asks, the rage building up again. I just lean into him, and rest my head on his chest, glad to finally relax. He puts his arm around me, careful not to touch any sensitive spots. He kisses the top of my head, and runs his fingers through my dark brown hair. It actually feels great for him to know. I don't have to be lying to him every second anymore. I smile, and start to fall asleep.

Ezra's POV

Aria quickly falls asleep in my arms, and I slowly let the anger towards her father die down. I listen to her even breathing and try to sync mine to hers. What kind of man would hurt his own daughter like this? I promised her I wouldn't do anything, so all I can do is be here for her.

Emily's POV

Aria won't answer our phone calls, and I'm getting worried. Obviously not as worried as Spencer, who is pacing back and forth with one hand cupped on the back of her neck.

"Maybe we should check her house?" I suggest.

"She wouldn't go there." Spencer shakes her head.

"Maybe Mr. Fitz's apartment?" Hanna suggests.

"That's probably where she is." I sigh.

"If she's there, she's safe." Spencer says.

"Maybe we should call Mr. Fitz and see if she's there." I point out.

"I don't have his number." Hanna and Spencer say at the same time.

"Luckily, I do." I say. I find him in contacts and call him. He picks up on the first ring.

"hello?" He says.

"Hi, Mr. Fitz. It's Emily."

"Oh, hi."

"Is Aria with you? She ran out on us and we were worried."

"Yeah, she's at my apartment. She's asleep though." He tells me.

"Ok, great, thanks." I say, and hang up.

"She's at his apartment." I say, and there is a three-way sigh of relief that almost makes me laugh.

"What's up with her?" Hanna asks. I'm just as curious as Hanna, and we both know that Spencer knows what's going on because of the way she acted with Aria.

"She's having some… family issues." Spencer says. That's not the whole truth. I can tell she's trying to hide something.

"Mike moved out." Spencer says. So that's why Aria is so sad all the time. It's just her and her dad now.

"Poor Aria." Hanna says. I almost believe that that's all that's going on, until I remember the massive bruise on Aria's arm and the fact that Spencer looks relieved that Hanna believes her.

"Spencer." I say. "What's going on?" She looks at the ground. I can tell she is at war with herself over what to tell us.

"I think her dad is… abusing her." Spencer says.

"WHAT?" Hanna and I both shout out. That explains the bruise, her being sad, and all the concealing clothes.

"Oh my god." I say. She must feel horrible.

* * *

Aria's POV

I wake up in Ezra's arms on the couch. He must have fallen asleep too. I turn my head and look over at the clock. It says seven forty-five. Crap. I realize that I didn't even tell my dad I wasn't going to come home last night. I pick up my phone. 8 missed calls. Four from the girls, two from my dad. _Oh, no. I'm so dead. He's gonna kill me._ I think. I quietly slide out from under Ezra's arm and write a note to leave on his counter saying I've gone home, and then I actually do go home.

* * *

I finally get home after driving so slowly to avoid getting here. I straighten up the whole car and I run out of things to stall going inside. I unlock the door with my key and silently walk in. Not even two seconds after I close the door I'm pinned to it.

"Where have you been?!" My father bellows. I can smell the alcohol on his breath. Uh-oh.

"I was.. um.. Spencer's." I stutter.

"Don't lie to me." He growls. He puts his hand around my throat and pushes me against the door. He's choking me, and I start coughing.

"I.. was… at.. Ezra's" I choke, giving in. His face is contorted in anger and fear strikes me in the heart. His fist impacts my face, and I black out.

**That's chapter two! You guys seemed to really like the first chapter, so I'll keep writing. If you haven't read my story called Aria's on A Short LeAsh, you might want to read that because I think the next story I write is going to be a sequel to that one. Review and let me know what you think. c: **


	3. Chapter 3

**Ok, this is a REALLY important chapter! Hope you enjoy it. Happy reading! -sototallyrandom**

Spencer's POV

I open my eyes, and the sunlight is too bright. I let out a yawn and sit up. Emily and Hanna are still asleep, so I decide to get up and make breakfast. Make breakfast as in cereal. I get out three bowls and they clank against the counter when I set them down. Hanna and Emily start to groggily wake up as I pour the cereal and the milk.

"Breakfast is served." I say, putting a bowl in each of their laps and sitting down with one.

"You shouldn't have." Hanna says sarcastically. I smile, but then remember that Aria is in hell.

"I have a text, just a sec." Emily says as she puts her spoon back in her bowl and picks up the phone. "It's from Fitz." She says.

"Well read it." I say.

"You guys were worried last night, so I just wanted to let you know that Aria went home this morning. –Ezra" Emily reads.

"Wow. Ezra." Hanna laughs a little. I hope Aria's dad doesn't figure out that she was at Ezra's and not here all night. I can tell that the girls think the same thing because we all three pick up our phones at the same time.

"I'll do it." I say, and the girls put their phones down. I hold the phone up to my ear, and it starts to ring. Once, twice, three times… Voicemail.

"I got voicemail." I tell the girls. Emily's face falls.

"If she's home, she would have picked up." Emily points out.

"I think we should go check on her." I say.

"Good idea." Hanna says while pulling on a jacket over her pajamas. Emily and I do the same. I grab my car keys and we go out the front door. I slide into the front seat, and Hanna called shotgun, so Emily is in the back. I start the engine and start to drive. After a silent ride, I park on the street beside her house. We all get out and walk up to the front door. I knock, but no one answers.

"There's a key under the mat." Hanna says. She bends over and lifts up the corner of the mat to reveal a shiny key, which she grabs. She then shoves the key into the lock and turns it. I open the door, and halfway open it hits something.

"Aria!" Emily gasps.

"SH! Her dad could be here.!" I hiss at her, and kneel next to Aria.

"Aria, wake up." I whisper, and gently shake her shoulder.

"Look at her eye." Hanna points out. It's blackened with a bruise.

"He hit her again." My face falls.

"I think he strangled her too." Emily says, shakily tracing her fingers down bruises on her neck.

"Come on, Aria. Wake up." I whisper. She opens her eyes and groans.

"Can you breath ok?" I ask.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She says as tears contradict what she's saying. She starts sobbing uncontrollably. "He's getting scarier." She cries.

"Shhh. It's ok." Emily says as the three of us help her up. We walk her out to my car and have her sit in the back with Emily. Hanna and I give each other a worried look when we slide into the front seats and put on out seatbelts. Aria stopped sobbing and is now quietly crying, so Emily holds her in a hug, not worrying about her seat belt.

"Everything's going to be alright." Emily whispers.

"No it's not." Aria complains. I look back at her, and she looks so broken. Like she was snapped in half. I needed to do something to make her feel better, and I think only Ezra can do that for her. Aria realizes where we are when I park and she stops crying. Her face even lights up a bit.

"Thanks guys." Aria says. We all manage to put on a smile as she gets out of the car and walks into the building.

* * *

Aria's POV

I'm at Ezra's apartment, laying on his bed, waiting for him to get home. After me showing up, crying, him calming me down and trying to call child protection services, and then me calming _him _down, he finally decided that he would go get pizza and we would watch a movie. I'm listening to the clock tick the seconds by when I hear a knock on the door.

"Ezra, you don't have to knock, it's your apartment." I laugh. The knocking gets louder. I groan and walk over the door. I open the door and jump in shock.

"D-dad." I try to greet him. As soon as I opened the door I could smell the alcohol. He's really drunk. And really angry. He's really drunk and really angry.

"We're going home." He growls, and starts yanking me by my bruised arm.

"Dad!" I yelp. After a minute of torture, I'm finally pushed into the passenger seat of his car and the door is closed on me. He gets into the driver's side and gets us out of the parking lot onto the road.

"Dad, let me out." I demand.

"No." He says.  
"Stop the car!" I plead. He jerks to the left then is quickly back onto the road and I remember.

"DAD YOU CAN'T DRIVE. STOP THE CAR!" I scream at him.

"Dad! YOU'RE DRUNK YOU CAN'T DRIVE!" I yell as the car slips off the road and we start tumbling down a hill. I scream, and it feels like I'm on an amusement part ride, but it's not tested to be safe, and there is glass and shrapnel flying everywhere. My head hits the side of the car too many times for me to count, and we finally crash to a stop, upside down. I'm hanging upside-down in the seat, and my blood is running down my head, face and every part of me and dripping onto the roof of the car. I cough, and glass falls out of my hair. I look to my left, and my dad isn't there. Neither is the door. I scream for help, but no one comes. I'm struggling for breath and I realize that there is a piece of metal protruding from my stomach. I try to unbuckle my seatbelt, but I can't find the button. I'm stuck hanging upside-down and I realize the pain in my arm. I take a look, and there is a piece of glass wedged into my forearm. I try to pull it out, but it's stuck somehow. I start sobbing and screaming. I see my phone in the grass where the windshield should be, and I pick it up with my good arm and try to call 911. Before I can, everything fades to black.

**Yes, I know, I leave you hanging way too much. Don't worry though, Aria doesn't die. Keep an eye out for chapter 4! Review and let me know what you think of this chapter.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Sorry it took so long for me to update!**

Spencer's POV

"Do you think we should tell someone?" Hanna asks.

"I don't think Aria would forgive us if we did." Emily says. "She didn't even want us to know." I agree with Emily, but Aria does need help. She can't live with her dad if he's doing this to her, but she can't get help because she'll never see him again.

"Do you think she stayed at Ezra's all night again? Do you think her dad will do something? Maybe we shouldn't have brought her there. What if we get her into trouble?" Emily rants. I'm not paying much attention though, because I just saw Aria's picture on the TV in the living room.

"Guys un-mute it!" I shout as I run into the living room. Emily picks up the remote and turns the sound on. We sit down and stare at the TV in shock as we listen to it.

"BREAKING NEWS: Today there was a tragic car accident in Rosewood. Aria Montgomery and her father were driving and the car rolled down a hill." We gasp as it goes on. "Tragically, Aria is the only one who survived and is in a coma at the hospital."

"Oh my god." I say.

"Guys, we have to get to the hospital!" Emily tells us.

"Guys wait." Hanna says, and we listen again.

"It might not be a coincidence that during the same hour she was found, her mother was murdered on the way to see her daughter. Was it intended for all three to die?"

"Oh my GOD!" I say. Without another word we all grab our coats and go outside to my car.

Ezra's POV

I'm sitting beside Aria's hospital bed in a foldable plastic chair, and I'm holding her hand. She has a breathing machine, along with a hundred other things hooked up to her. I put my face in my free hand and cry like a baby. I should have called child protection services while I could. Now she's an orphan and she might not ever wake up. I'm also afraid that whoever killed Ella will come after Aria. I let out a few tears for Ella. Even though she hated me because I was dating her daughter, she was my friend._ I_ _AM dating her daughter. _I corrected myself. I'm starting to talk about Aria in the past tense, and it worries me. Spencer, Emily, and Hanna walk into the room with ashen faces and pull up more foldable chairs and sit next to me.

"Is she going to be ok?" Spencer asks.

"Only if she wakes up." I respond, and her face falls when I say if.

"Come on Aria, wake up." Hanna whimpers.

"She can't hear you." Emily mutters solemnly.

"What's going to happen when she wakes up?" Hanna asks.

Spencer's POV

"What's going to happen when she wakes up?" Hanna asks. At that moment a million things flood my mind. Aria is going to be so sad, earlier today she had two parents, and she'll wake up with none. What's going to happen to her if she doesn't have parents? Will the same thing happen to Mike even though he already moved out? What if they put her in foster care across the country or something?! She'll end up like Caleb, with a foster parent who only has her so they can get a check. I have to do something to help, or she'll be in foster care for two years. Oh my gosh. I have such an amazing idea. But I can't tell anyone yet, it's too soon.

2 weeks later….

Ezra's POV

Aria still hasn't woken up, and I'm skipping teaching at Hollis almost every day to sit in her hospital room, just holding her hand. Today is especially heartbreaking, because the doctor said he doesn't think she'll ever wake up. I mean she's been gone for two weeks, but it's horrible thinking that she could be gone for good.

Spencer's POV

I feel so horrible for Aria. She missed her parents' funeral last week. It was really sad, everyone in Rosewood came. I don't know if Aria will ever be able to get over the fact that she wasn't there. Mike wasn't there either. When he left he didn't give anyone his new number or address except for Aria. He doesn't know they're dead either. Emily and Hanna are finally getting a little bit back to normal and went to school today, but I skipped to come see Aria. I'm a little happy today, because I told finally had the guts to tell my parents about my idea and they happily agreed. I check in at the desk and the lady tells me to go to room 216. I go in the elevator and walk down halls to Aria's room. Ezra is sitting on the chair beside her bed, looking heartbroken. I pull up a chair next to him and sit down wordlessly after replacing the dead flowers in the vase beside her bed with new ones I bought in the get well soon gift shop downstairs. Aria looks much better, except for all the tubes hooked up to her. All of her injuries are healed except for her broken arm. Now she just needs to wake up. Ezra looks up at me, and I notice how much of a mess he is. His eyes are sleepless and bloodshot and there is stubble on his chin. But something's wrong. Today he's crying. Usually when we're here at the same time we sit here awkwardly and silently, but not today.

"Did the doctor tell you?" He asks me sadly.  
"Tell me what?" I ask, fearing the worst. I can see him clenching his jaw to keep from sobbing.

"The doctor doesn't think she'll wake up." He says, his eyes not leaving Aria's face the whole time. My heart rips itself in half and I start crying with Ezra beside Aria's body. After what seems like an hour of sobbing, I finally pull myself together. I had promised to give Hanna and Emily any updates, but I can't just text them that our best friend is going to die. I text them to meet me in the lobby, and I wordlessly stand up and walk out of the room, watching Aria the whole way. I'm surprised when Ezra follows me out.

"I can't sit in there with her. It's like being tortured." He explains. I nod and we walk down to the lobby.

* * *

Emily and Hanna had the same sobbing reaction that I did when I told them about Aria, and I sobbed again with them, and Ezra sat crying a few yards away from us. All of a sudden, a loud siren goes off and the nurse at the front desk shouts out to a doctor.

"The patient in room 216's heart stopped!"

"That's Aria!" I shout. "NO!" I sceam in denial. She can't go so soon. I run right behind the doctor in the mad dash to Aria's room, and I think the others do too, but I don't know because I didn't look back.

We burst into Aria's room, expecting to have to save her life, but she's sitting up in her bed, looking really confused and holding all the tubes and wires she disconnected from herself.

"ARIA!" I scream. I push past the doctor and wrap my arms around her.

"You're alive!" Ezra shouts, his tears looking happy now as he hugs her. Emily and Hanna also hug her, still crying and trying to calm down from the panic attack thirty seconds ago.

"What.. What do you mean? Where am I?" She asks.

"You're in the hospital honey, you were in a car crash." Her eyes flash with fear.

"Where's my dad?!" She asks, worried. None of us know what to say to her, so we don't say anything. Our faces say enough though, because she bursts into tears.

"No! no, no, no, no!" She shouts. Ezra hugs her tightly, and she cries onto his shoulder. I have to tell her now.

"Your mom too." I mutter. Emily, Hanna, and Ezra glare at me.

"What?! She wasn't even there!" Aria yells, hysterical.

"She was murdered." I tell her.

"Spencer SHUT UP!" Everyone tells me. But she had to know sometime. I thought it would be best not to wait. If we told her later it would be a whole lot worse. Aria keeps sobbing, and I didn't remember that the doctor was in the room until he calms Aria down with some drugs and gives us a sad look as he leaves the room. Aria lies in her bed quietly crying, and all we can do is sit there and comfort her and try to distract her a bit.

"I'm soo glad you're finally awake." Emily says, and gives Aria another hug.

"Wait, how long have I been out?" She asks.

"Two weeks." I say. Her eyes widen.

"Welcome back to the world." Ezra says with a small smile. Aria plasters a small smile on her face, and you can tell it's forced. Her eyes become confused and I see a thought sneak into her head.

"What am I going to do? What if I have to live at an orphanage?" Aria asks, worried.

"Well, they were going to put you in foster care… but…" I smile, knowing I'm about to tell her my idea.

"But what?"

"My parents adopted you." I say with a smile.

**Next chapter coming soon…. Review and let me know what you thought of this one!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Sorry it's taking me longer than normal to update. :/ I'm just having a long writer's block, and I don't know exactly what I'm doing with the plot yet, so it's taking a little longer for me to write.**

Aria's POV

I can't believe what I'm hearing.

"We're sisters?" I ask, totally bewildered. Spencer smiles and nods. I can see that Hanna, Emily, and Ezra are shocked too. Obviously Spencer has been keeping this a secret.

"Oh my god thank you!" I shout and reach up to give her a hug.

"Well I couldn't let you live in some foster home, could I?" Spencer says as she hugs me back. This is so amazing. I already feel like we're sisters, but now we really ARE sisters.

"Aria Hastings." Hanna says with a laugh.

"It sounds like I'm married to her or something." I say, and Emily bursts out laughing.

"Aria, I really have to go, I'll visit you tomorrow?" Ezra says to me. I pout, but he kisses me and I smile.

"Ok, I'll see you later." I say. He walks out of the room. I lean back in my bed and sigh. Life is going to be a whole lot different. My head starts to pound and I close my eyes tight, bringing my fingers up to my temples. I hear someone calling my name, multiple people calling my name, and the pain slowly ceases.

"Aria?!" The girls are shouting, worried. I shake my head, take a deep breath, and look over at them.

"I'm fine." I tell them, but they don't look convinced.

"Are you sure?" Emily asks.

"Positive." I lie. That headache hurt REALLY bad, almost like the car crashed again. Suddenly the memory hits me at full force, and it feels like I'm watching it as a movie.

_"Dad! YOU'RE DRUNK YOU CAN'T DRIVE!" I yell as the car slips off the road and we start tumbling down a hill. I scream, and it feels like I'm on an amusement park ride, but it's not tested to be safe, and there is glass and shrapnel flying everywhere. My head hits the side of the car too many times for me to count, and we finally crash to a stop, upside down. I'm hanging upside-down in the seat, and my blood is running down my head, face and every part of me and dripping onto the roof of the car._

I shake myself back into reality, and I shiver.

"Aria?" Spencer questions after putting a hand on my shoulder.

"I'm fine." I mutter.

Spencer's POV

She doesn't look fine. She just had a headache then blanked out for a minute. I give her a look, and she gives me a quick glare.

"I think you should rest." Emily says.

"Guys, I feel fine." Aria tries to convince us.

"Just rest up, we'll visit you tomorrow." Hanna says, and the three of them leave the room. I sink back into my bed, and finally have the room to myself to cry. I sob into my pillow for hours, until I feel completely dead and emotionless. I wipe the tears off my face when a nurse walks in.

"You're getting discharged now, come with me." The nurse says. A little jolt of happiness arouses inside me when I think about Spencer being my sister. I slide out of bed, and follow the nurse to the lobby. I expect to see Spencer, but there's only a man in a suit. He shakes my hand and introduces himself.

"Hello, I'm Mr. Galveston from the foster care center." Wait what? I'm awestruck and wordless as I try to process. I thought Spencer's parents adopted me? What is going on? Mr. Galveston whispers a question to the nurse, but I can still hear it.

"Does she talk?"

"She was talking earlier. Maybe she's just shy."

"Or she's another one of those kids who get all messed up when their parents die."

Their conversation continues for another few minutes until I finally get tired of it.

"Are you going to tell me what's going on, or talk about how 'messed up' I am?" I ask. Mr. Galveston looks like he just saw a dog talk, but then he addresses me.

"I'm here to take you to your new home." He says, cautious. Finally. To Spencer's. I nod, and he leads me out to a car with his hand pressing my back forward into the car between my shoulder blades. I sit down in the back seat, and a memory rushes back again.

_I'm hanging upside-down in the seat, and my blood is running down my head, face and every part of me and dripping onto the roof of the car._

I flinch, and Mr. Galveston looks at me like I'm a retard.

"What?" I say, and he quickly closes the door. The only thing that's mine that I have with me is my phone. I guess Spencer will take me back to my old house to get my stuff. Without realizing it, I doze off in the backseat.

* * *

I wake up when the car slows to a stop and I look out the window. This is not Rosewood. The sky is grey, and so is all of the surrounding area. What?! Why am I not going to Spencer's?! THEY ADOPTED ME! What is wrong with this man? My phone buzzes, and I look down at it. It's an A text.

_Once an orphan, always an orphan. –A_

I hate that bitch. What did A do?! I don't want to be in foster care! Mr. Galveston leads me up to the front porch of an old run down house.

"Are we in Ravenswood?" I ask him. I have to figure out where I am, so I can tell Spencer where to come get me.

"No. We're much further away from Rosewood than that. Most kids like to get far away from where their parents died." Mr. Galveston says. What the hell! I am not supposed to be here! We're up to the front door and he rings the doorbell. We stand there waiting for a minute until a little burnet girl opens the door.

"Hello sweetie, can I talk to your mother?" Mr. Galveston asks. The little girl is staring into my eyes, and it makes me nervous. I look down at the ground, but I can't help but look back up at her. She looks sad. Almost as sad as me. She's scared too. Scared like me. The little girl nods and closes the door. A moment later, a woman opens the door.

"Hi! Mr. Galveston! It's great that you finally brought her! It's so nice to meet you, sweetie!" The woman says, changing from talking to him to talking to me. I just nod.

"Let me know if you have any trouble." Mr. Galveston says before heading back to his car and leaving me here. I take a deep breath and walk into the house behind the woman. She seems nice enough. We walk into the living room and the little girl is sitting on the couch, looking up at me with worry. I recognize her face, I have made it several times myself. It's the oh-no-I-might-get-hit face I used to have with my dad. I look back up at the woman, and her face isn't so joyous anymore.

"Don't get your hopes up. I just need a babysitter." She says in a rough voice as she lights a cigarette. Greaaat. I sit down on the couch next to the little girl and the woman leaves the room.

"You're number six." She tells me.

"What?"

"You're the sixth babysitter she got me." She tells me.

"You mean she's had foster children before?" I ask her, concerned.

"Yes." The little girl says. "They all killed themself. Mommy told Mr. Galveston that she didn't do anything. But she did. She hurt Mary and me." I take a deep breath. This is not a good situation.

"What's your name?" I ask her.

"Avery." She answers.

"I've been through kind of the same thing as you. I won't let her hurt you." I say, and Avery throws her arms around my waist and begins crying.

"Shhhh, it's ok." I tell her. I feel so sorry for this little girl. She sniffles and looks up at me. She hugs me tighter and I am instantly attached to Avery. I sit there comforting her and the woman goes out the front door without even telling us she's leaving. As soon as her mother is gone, Avery acts like a normal seven year old.

"So what's your name?" Avery asks, her head tilted a little to the side, almost like a perky dog.

"Aria." I say.

"That's a pretty name." She says, sitting in my lap. I smile.

"What happened to your arm?" Avery asks, poking the cast on my right arm.

"I was in a car crash." I say, looking at the ground.

"Can I sign it?" She asks. I let out a small laugh at her perkiness. I haven't been this happy in a long time. Something about this little girl makes me love her like a sister, and I've known her for ten minutes.

"Sure." I say with a smile. The girl hops off my lap and runs into the kitchen. In a minute she runs back holding a pink marker. I smile and hold my arm out for her to sign. She signs her name big on my hardly signed white cast. She signs her name with little hearts on both sides of her name. She snaps the marker shut, and admires her work.

"Can we play a game?" She asks. I completely forget that I ended up in foster care when I'm with Avery. She's like the little sister I never had. We played Uno, Hide-and-Seek, Checkers, and every game we could possibly think of. It's getting dark out, and I finally stop playing with her. I'm exhausted.

"When will your mom get home?" I ask her.

"She never comes home till late." Avery tells me, while she colors on a piece of paper with her pink marker.

"What do you do for dinner?" I ask her, concerned.

"Mommy never makes anything, so I wait until I'm at school to eat." She says. It's just then that I realize how skinny she is.

"You poor kid." I say, and my eyes start to water thinking about her starving. She looks up at me, then goes back to coloring.

"I can make you something." I offer. She looks up at me.

"You can?" She asks happily.

"Of course!" I get up off the couch and walk into the kitchen. I open the pantry, and there is a box of mac n' cheese.

"Do you like mac n' cheese?" I ask, holding the box up. Her eyes light up.

"It's my favorite!" She says excitedly. I realize that I'm pretty hungry too as I open the box and start to boil some water.

"I'll have it ready in like 10 minutes, ok?" I tell her.

"Ok. I'm going to go color." She says with a smile. This kid is so amazing. I pour the noodles into the now boiling water, and the reality of the situation sinks in. I live here. How can I live here? I'm supposed to be Spencer's sister. I pull my phone out of my pocket and text Spencer.

_Aria: I'm in foster care!_

_Spencer: What?_

_Aria: I got discharged from the hospital and now I'm taking care of my foster sister…?_

_Spencer: But my parents adopted you!_

_Aria: gtg, taking care of Avery._

_Spencer: Who?_

_Aria: My foster sister._

I put my phone back in my pocket and look down at the little girl pulling my sleeve.

"Is it done yet?" She asks.

"No sweetie." I laugh. "A couple more minutes." She pouts and sits down at the table.

Spencer's POV

I was hanging out at The Grill with the girls when I got the texts from Aria.

"Who is it?" Hanna asks.

"Is it A?" Emily asks.

"It's Aria.." I say, dumbstruck.

"Is she ok?" Hanna asks.

"She's in foster care!" I shout. A couple people around the room turn to look at us, then look away.

"I thought your parents adopted her!" Emily exclaims.

"They did!" I shout, almost in tears. All three of our phones buzz, and we pick them up.

_Once an orphan, always an orphan. Don't worry; I picked a nice home for her. All five of the girls who have been there before committed suicide. -A_

"Oh. My. God." Emily says. I can almost feel the steam billowing out of my ears.

"A messed with the paperwork." Hanna mutters.

"We have to get my mom to do the paperwork and adopt Aria again before something happens!" I exclaim, and we rush out of the house to go get my mother.

**Wow, that took FOREVER for me to write! (Long chapter, right?) Well, hope you guys liked it. I'll try and update again tomorrow, but in the meantime, review and give me your ideas and let me know what you think ;)**


	6. Chapter 6

**I finally got the plot worked out for this story! :p So I can probably update a little faster now. Happy reading! -sototallyrandom**

Spencer's POV

"Mom!" I shout as I open the front door.

"What?" My mom asks.

"The paperwork got messed up! Aria's in foster care!" I exclaim. My mom pulls me into a hug.

"Don't worry, honey, I'm going to fix this." She says.

Aria's POV

I'm cleaning the dishes in the kitchen when I hear a crash in the living room. I run over and see the lamp from the side table in pieces on the ground and Avery is crying.

"Are you ok?" I ask as I check for any cuts on her.

"Mommy's going to hurt me!" She crys. Just then, with horrible timing, her mom walks in the front door and sees the lamp and me kneeling next to Avery.

"You little brat!" She stomps over and raises her hand to hit Avery.

"It.. it was me!" I shout out and stand in front of Avery protectively. She slaps me in the face.

"I let you into my home and you break my things!" she screams at me. She slaps me again when I don't say anything. I will not go through this again. She deserves to have her lamp broken anyway. The woman gets closer and clamps her hands around my throat. I start gasping for breath, and another memory hits me.

_"Where have you been?!" My father bellows. I can smell the alcohol on his breath. Uh-oh._

_"I was.. um.. Spencer's." I stutter._

_"Don't lie to me." He growls. He puts his hand around my throat and pushes me against the door. He's choking me, and I start coughing._

I freak out. I don't want to do this again. I kick the woman in the shin and she releases my throat. I get down on my hands and knees on the ground and gasp for breath. She kicks me in the side with her heels and walks away. Avery stares at me, wide-eyed.

"I'm going to get you out of here." I cough. "Let's go get your stuff." I tell her. She leads me to her room and grabs a little backpack out of the closet.

"Ok, you'll need this…" I say as I start stuffing things into her bag. Jacket, scarf, earmuffs… It's mostly stuff to keep her warm, because winter isn't quite over yet and it's colder here than in rosewood.

"Can I bring fluffy?" She asks, holding up a stuffed bunny. I laugh.

"Sure." I tell her, and she smiles and hugs it. She runs over and hugs me after I slip her backpack on her. Next I go back into the main living area, and find and normal person sized backpack in the closet by the front door. I stuff all of the food I can fit into the backpack and throw it over my back. Unfortunately, I don't have a jacket or anything. All I have is my phone. I put my hand in my pocket to text Ezra, I forgot to tell him I wasn't in the hospital. I feel so guilty. In my defense, I did have other things on my mind though. My phone isn't in my pocket. I check my other pocket. It's gone! Oh great. The woman comes out of her evil lair (her bedroom) and sees us packed up at the door.

"Avery RUN!" I shout, and we run out the front door and down the street. She's a fast little kid. After a while we feel like we're safe and not being followed, so we slow to a walk.

"What is this town?" I ask. Avery thinks for a moment.

"Ravenswood." She says. What? I am so confused. Didn't that man say that we were further away? Did he say that so I wouldn't try to run?

Spencer's POV

My mom fixed the paperwork mix-up and we're finally on our way to get Aria from her foster home address we were given. It's in Ravenswood. After what seems like forever we park in the driveway and walk up to the door. I knock, and a woman answers.

"Is Aria here?" my mom asks.

"You mean the foster brat?" The woman says in an angry voice. "She ran away and my daughter went with her." She doesn't even seem to care that her daughter is missing and she just closes the door on us.

"So she's out there somewhere?" I ask, motioning at the whole town.

"Don't worry Spencer, We'll find her." My mom says. "Call the police and let them know she's missing. I'll call the adoption agency and tell them." She tells me. I hesitantly call the police, because every time I see police there is usually a body bag, but Aria only ran away from a foster home, she'll be ok.

Aria's POV

My head is pounding and I'm using my free hand to massage my temples. My other hand is holding Avery's, who is holding Fluffy in her other arm while we walk.

"Can we just stop for a minute?" I ask her. She nods, and we sit down on the cold ground. Shreds of the memory are coming at me so fast I can't even tell if they are in order.

_"Dad! YOU'RE DRUNK YOU CAN'T DRIVE!" I yell_

_My head hits the side of the car too many times for me to count, and we finally crash to a stop, upside down._

_my blood is running down my head, face and every part of me and dripping onto the roof of the car._

_I look to my left, and my dad isn't there. Neither is the door._

_there is a piece of metal protruding from my stomach._

_piece of glass wedged into my forearm._

I jerk back into reality and see Avery's eyes looking into mine.

"Are you ok?" She asks, worried.

"Fine." I say, and I stand back up. She does the same, and we keep walking.

**Hope you like the chapter! I know it's a little shorter than usual, but the next one will be pretty long. Review and let me know what you thought of the chapter! ^_^**


	7. Chapter 7

**Sorry guys, but I think this is the last chapter on this story. I guess I didn't want to drag it on if I don't have any good ideas, you know? Don't worry, I will wrap it up nicely though. Well I hope you enjoy, and if you haven't read my other story called Aria's on A Short LeAsh, you probably should because my next story is a sequel to it. Happy reading! -sototallyrandom**

Aria's POV

It's really dark, and I think we have to stop for the night. I don't know exactly where we are, but Avery says we are still in Ravenswood.

"Do you know anywhere we can stop? Like a park or something?" I ask her, never letting go of her little hand.

"I think there is a park over there." She says, pointing to our left. We walk in that direction for about ten minutes until Avery gets too tired.

"I don't wanna walk anymore." Avery complains. "My feet hurt." I sigh and lift her up. Even though she's small and underweight, I know I can't carry her for long because of my own tiny size, but I try. We finally get to the park and I sigh in relief. The playground has sand in the jungle-jim area, so I bring Avery over to it and set her down.

"This should be soft enough for tonight." I tell her as we crawl under a slide and lean back.

"I'm starving." Avery tells me. Oh yeah. I left that macaroni on the stove when the lamp broke. I hope it lit on fire and burned her house down. I reach into my backpack and pull out a bunch of cereal bars and two water bottles. We each have three cereal bars and a water. Avery falls asleep quickly, lying on the sand, using her backpack as a pillow, and hugging Fluffy. I on the other hand stay wide awake. My head is hurting again, and I lay down using Avery's backpack idea. I close my eyes, but I can't sleep. I decide instead to count what food we have so I can make sure we don't run out until we get back to Rosewood. I dump the contents of the bag into the sand and make a list in my head.

10 cereal bars left,

6 more waters,

a box of crackers,

a box of cheerios,

4 apples,

and a box of oreos.

Wow, I really grabbed like the worst stuff. I might have enough food for two to three days if I spread it out. Especially since Avery needs to eat a lot to make up for what that woman did to her. The night continues, and I still can't sleep after I pack everything back up. I wish I had my phone so I could tell Ezra or Spencer where I am.

I wake up to Avery shaking my shoulder. I yawn and sit up. The sun is barely up.

"Where are we going today Aria?" She asks cheerfully.

"Well, we're trying to get to Rosewood, but I don't know how to get there from here." I tell her with disappointment in my voice.

"I know where it is!" Avery exclaims. This girl is amazing.

"Which way?" I ask her. She points, and I get up. I pull my backpack over my shoulders and put Avery's backpack on her. We start walking and I hand her an apple.

"Eat up." I tell her. She giggles and takes a bite. I get out an apple for myself and we eat as we walk. While we're walking down the open road to Rosewood, I think about lots of things. I wonder what will happen to Avery once we get to Rosewood. I won't let anyone take her out of my sight. She is not going back to that house.

Spencer's POV

I am totally and completely panicking. I'm pacing back and forth across the living room waiting for the twenty four hours to be over so the police will search for Aria. Emily and Hanna are sitting on my couch trying to convince me to calm down. I'm pretty hysterical.

"Spencer, Aria will be fine." Emily says.

"Yeah, she's probably on her way back right now!" Hanna says.

"But she's so tiny!" I exclaim. Did I seriously just say that?! What is wrong with me? Hanna and Emily give a little laugh but clamp their mouths shut when I glare at them.

"Spencer, she'll be fine!" Emily says.  
"But she's taking care of that little girl too! And she won't answer her phone!" I tell them.

"Aria's great with kids." Emily points out. I keep pacing. After a couple of hours, the girls had gone home, and I'm still pacing. My mother walks into the room.

"Did someone find her?" I ask immediately. My mom shakes her head, and I moan.

"It's been twenty four hours; the police need a picture of Aria." My mom tells me. "Can you find one?"

"Of course! I'll go get one." I say and run up the stairs. I pull a scrapbook off of the shelf in my room and open it up. I pull out the first photo of Aria. Crap. This is an old photo. I can tell because of the pink stripes in her hair. I scan through the book and find one from her last birthday. It's a great picture. I pull it out and run downstairs to give it to my mom.

Aria's POV

While we're walking, my head starts to hurt again. At first it is just barely there, but it gets stronger and stronger until I can feel my head throbbing. Avery looks up and me and I try to smile, but a pain shoots through my temples and I cry out. Avery wraps her arms around my waist, but I collapse to the ground.

"Aria?" Avery says while shaking my shoulder. The pain is becoming unbearable. I start sobbing and Avery is trying to comfort me. Memories come strong and fast. Every upsetting memory flashes through my mind.

_"Dad, maybe you should just have some water…?" I suggest, and try to take the glass from his hand. He backhands me in the face._

_Looks like you won't be getting any daddy-daughter time -A _

_"Don't lie to me." He growls. He puts his hand around my throat and pushes me against the door. He's choking me, and I start coughing._

_His fist impacts my face, and I black out._

_"Dad! YOU'RE DRUNK YOU CAN'T DRIVE!" I yell as the car slips off the road_

_My head hits the side of the car too many times for me to count, and we finally crash to a stop,_

_I'm hanging upside-down in the seat, and my blood is running down my head, face and every part of me and dripping onto the roof of the car_

_"No! no, no, no, no!" "Your mom too."_

_What?! Why am I not going to Spencer's?!_

_Once an orphan, always an orphan. –A_

_The woman gets closer and clamps her hands around my throat. I start gasping for breath,_

I scream in pain and start to black out. The last thing I see is Avery's worried little face.

* * *

I slowly drift back into consciousness, aware that I'm in the back seat of a car.

"Aria! You're awake!" I hear Avery's joyous little voice and I bolt upright.

"Hi there." I say with a smile as she hugs me. The car pulls over on the side of the road and the driver leans back.

"Spencer!" I shout out. Spencer leans back and we awkwardly hug. "I am SO glad to see you!" I exclaim.

"Well it took me all night to find you." We separate and I instantly smother her in questions.

"Did you fix the paperwork? Am I your sister? What's going to happen to Avery?"

"Yes, yes, and…" Spencer answers two of my questions.

"And?" Spencer gives me a wide smile.

"My mom is going to get custody of Avery!" Spencer says. I cannot believe what I'm hearing.

"This is amazing!" I say. "Thank you so much!" I turn to Avery.

"We are all three sisters now, Avery." I say, hugging her tight.

"Can we get something to eat?" She asks. I see that she's still holding Fluffy, and I laugh.

"Of course!" Spencer says. "Aria, you hungry?"

"very." I answer.

After we stop for fast food, we drive home in the dark, and I'm quietly chatting with Spencer while holding a sleeping Avery and Fluffy. It feels great finally knowing that everything is going to be ok.

**I hope you enjoyed the story! I'm so sorry I had to rush to end it, I just wasn't very into it anymore and I wanted to get a start on the sequel to Aria's on A Short LeAsh, because I have the idea and I'm totally stoked to write it! So go read Aria's on A Short LeAsh if you haven't already, and review and let me know what you thought of this story! -sototallyrandom**


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